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Wednesday, June 13, 2007

Poker Pro Phil Hellmuth: Winner or Whiner?

Poker pro Phil Hellmuth has once again proven that he's truly the undisputed king of the poker table after winning the World Series of Poker’s Event #15 and his 11th WSOP golden bracelet.

Hellmuth is now the sole owner of the most WSOP bracelets won by a single player, moving ahead of poker legends Johnny Chan and Doyle Brunson, who have both won ten bracelets each.

Playing nearly perfect poker from start to finish, Hellmuth was never out of contention and finished off an experienced final table with a focused, error-free quest for the win and the record. In addition to the elusive gold hardware Phil received $637,254 in cash. Andy Philacheck finished second, winning $369,594.

Congratulations to Phil Hellmuth for a great WSOP record-setting win. He also holds the record for most WSOP cashes at 60.

Phil Hellmuth was born in 1964 in Madison, Wisconsin, and has won 11 World Series of Poker Bracelets, more than any other player, including a main event win in 1989.Hellmuth has been at over 20 final tables at the World Series of Poker and has won over 4 million dollars there. At age 24, He was the youngest player to ever win the championship no-limit event at the WSOP.

When not at the tables, Hellmuth lives in Palo Alto, California with his wife, who is a psychologist, and his two sons. In 2006, he was chosen to replace Phil Gordon as the new co-host of Celebrity Poker Showdown.

At the 2002 World Series, after getting knocked out by Robert Varkonyi, Hellmuth swore Varkonyi could shave his head if he won. Varkonyi did indeed win, and Hellmuth did indeed his opponent to shave his head."I said the other day that I'd pay a million dollars to win another bracelet, but (I) had to win it. I didn't know if I'd get there because I came close three times this trip. I'm just so, so happy."

If you’re not familiar with Phil Hellmuth, he’s known throughout the professional poker world as a brat, a whiner, a gloater, a blowhard and a poor sport. Many people call him the John McEnroe of poker. That’s an insult to McEnroe, in my opinion.

Hellmuth is a sore loser and a worse winner. Every time he loses a hand, he calls his opponent lucky and questions their poker skills. He is arrogant and acts like he invented the game. The man has made a fortune producing how-to poker DVD’s and through his web site. He’s the guy poker fans love to hate.

And now, he’s the best in the history of the game. There is no one else out there who has achieved what Phil Hellmuth has in professional poker. But, he’s also one of the most despised men in the sport.

What can I say, results talk and everything else can walk. The man is the best and there’s no denying it. I just wish Chan or Brunson had set the record, because they display a lot more class and are probably better spokesmen for the game.

It just proves that Leo Durocher was correct when he said that “nice guys finish last.” Or in this case, they end up in second place.